Breaking
by But Friends Make Secrets
Summary: After a little "accident" with Pietro, the Brotherhood move in with the x-men. See how that works out! Please read! Better than it sounds! Rated for mentions of abuse and descriptions of injuries. Nothing too bad though. Now continuing again!
1. Chapter 1

**Hey ya'll! Ok, so this is my first x-men fic, so please be kind. I'm all for constructive criticism, but please keep the _constructive_ part in mind. Oh, and parts of this might might seem kinda weird, but Pietro's pretty messed up right now, so keep that in mind, too.**

**DISCLAIMER!! I do not own X-Men: Evolution or any of the characters! ...That makes me sad...**

I walk, stagger more like it, along the side of the road. Swaying from side to side to a rhythm only I can hear. If anyone was watching, they would find my pace rather odd. I, Pietro the incredible Quicksilver, _walking_? Not running leaving a trail of dust and destruction in my wake? Strange…

I have many unusual, quirks, you could call them. I always sleep on my side, facing the door of my room. When I sit for too long, I tap my left foot and right hand back and forth, _tap thump, _much to my classmates annoyance. I chew on my fingers when I'm nervous, careful to never chew my actual nails. But, of all these quirks, the least obvious one is also my most important one.

I never run without a reason.

That's a pretty vague quirk, I know, but it's true. I run to catch things, I run away from things. I run to clear my mind, to distract myself, to remind myself that I'm still here.

Thinking about it, it's probably not really a quirk, as anything could count as a 'reason', but I guess 'cause my reasons require running so much, I just call it a quirk.

Heh, Lance would probably laugh at all this. I wouldn't blame him. My brain goes so fast, it can't keep up with itself. Another thing that makes no sense.

But now I'm getting distracted again. The point of all this is, I am currently not running because I currently have no reason.

But I will soon.

I wonder if the others have noticed that I'm gone yet. More importantly, I wonder if they care. With friends like mine, brothers like our name suggests, you can never really be sure. After all, I do seem to have a knack for annoying people to the point of homicide. Perhaps that explains my father. Any self-respecting therapist would say I shouldn't blame myself for all the things he did/ is doing/ will do. But I'm clearly far from being a therapist.

Or self-respecting for that matter. I could probably thank father for that one as well.

_Father_. Such a meaningless title given away to any bastard who decides to reproduce. '_Father_' means nothing anymore because of people like him. People who…

Oh dear, I seem to have gotten off track again. I'm still on that same road, but now I'm standing still, watching the cars rush past at a speed that would impress/ terrify anyone else. I stand in the shadows watching. Watching. The colors of the cars seems to bleed together. Mesh. But just as quickly as the whirlpool of colors had come, did they melt away, leaving a black and white memory in its wake.

It does seem eerily similar to back then… You see, father dearest had very high _expectations_ of his children. Wanda couldn't meet them, so she was sent away. I don't mean to sound insensitive. It's just the way things were. So now father, or Magneto as he preferred/ demanded to be called, focused all his attention on me. And the more he paid attention, the more flaws he saw, and the more harsh he became.

'_Abuse_' is such a cold word. He was _training_ me. I had to be stronger, smarter, faster, faster, _faster_. I distinctly remember the large metal room, so very similar to a certain room found in the Xavier mansion. It was even dangerous. Will the irony never end? I remember having metal boxes and poles and anything else he could think of thrown at me. Having to dodge it all. Having to be fast enough to meet his standards. To _survive_.

That is, of course, assuming that I wanted to.

But the problem with all this is, Magneto had no limits. But I did. He would have happily stayed in that room endangering my life for days and had no problem whatsoever. But I could only go so long before my calves would burn, my lungs not get enough air, my heart burst.

You can only expect so much from an eight-year-old.

So I had a few options. I could ask him to stop. He would either laugh or scowl or both and make everything go faster. Or, I could do nothing, wait for my body to shut down on its own, and be… '_punished_' later for my incompetence. Or, the option I chose most often, I could stop. Intentionally get plowed over by some airborne piece of metal. Usually, he would look at me all disappointed and just…leave. Simple as that. No checking to see if I was seriously injured, see if I was ok, show an ounce of sympathy or, God forbid, _caring_. No. If I couldn't handle whatever I got hit with, then clearly I wasn't strong enough.

Not good enough. Not worth his time. I had to pick myself up, clean and bandage my own wounds, and try not to make too much noise as I sobbed myself to sleep.

And now I'm back in the present. Still standing. Still watching. I take a step forward into the sun. Watching. Waiting. I think I'm thinking too much. Does that make sense? Probably not. I think I hear Lance laughing.

I take a breath. Take a moment. Take a step. And suddenly I'm in the street. Cars racing past me. Or perhaps I'm racing past them? I suppose it doesn't matter. I'm not even there to them. Just an invisible wind, spinning and twirling around them. I smile.

There's really nothing to smile about.

By now, I'm dancing. There's no other word for it, my fluid movements, my graceful leaps and bounds around the black and white, Technicolor whirlpool surrounding me. That didn't make sense. Besides, by now I think I'm surrounding it.

The sun is falling lower and lowing into the sky. Time is beginning to elude me. The cars are slower, the sun is faster, and I'm dancing within it all.

I start to feel the familiar pains of fatigue. My lungs, heart, legs, all betray me with the pain they emit. I slow, slightly. I'm now not quite as invisible. I'm still a blur and nothing more. Those who notice me disregard the sight within a moment, passing it off as lack of sleep, or a trick of the light.

I slow more, smiling wider though there is just as little to smile about as before.

Time starts to return to normal. The cars and the sun synchronizing perfectly. Although by now I know that there is no such thing as perfect.

I slow more, almost giddy in anticipation of what I know it to come, only sightly aware of how sick my enjoyment of this really is. I briefly recall a particularly bad day filled with _'training_' and '_punishments_' when I had sat in my room, sobbing oh, so silently, wondering whether it was better to die now and get it over with, or live just to spite my father. I never did think of an answer.

Maybe that's why I'm smiling now. I don't have to think of an answer. I'm leaving the decision up to whoever's behind the wheel today. If I live, whoop-de-do, I get to go back home and lie every time someone asks me if I'm ok and hope that someday I can join the rest of the world in the land of the truly _living_. And if I don't, well, I'd be like a student let out of detention five minutes earlier than everyone else. Happy to be free, but left with that pang of guilt brought on by the friends left behind who you know have just as much a reason to want to leave as you do.

I think I'll just let the car decide.

I continue moving for a moment longer, soaking in the golden-orange glow of sunset before just……

Stopping.

Due to my speed allowing me to see things slower, I am able to more deeply appreciate the damage done to my body. My ribs are broken first, slammed by the bumper of the car, the license plate cutting into my skin. My legs are next. Surprisingly, I don't hear or feel either of them break, but I do feel the skin tear and the muscles bruise. I feel my head fly forward. Notice the detail of the spider web like pattern the windshield has now become. I am morbidly fascinated by the way my blood runs down the cracks from my forehead.

But before I can get a better chance to observe my own, sick version of art, My body if flung to the side, tumbling off the road and into the grass, hearing my shoulder pop in the process. I roll a few times before settling on my back.

I stare up at the still golden sky. And I laugh. But my laughter soon becomes sobbing, which reverts back to laughter until the two simply melt together. I have my eyes clenched shut. My hysterical laughter so out of place with my broken body, and my broken mind and my tears mixing so beautifully with my own blood.

The sun sinks lower, probably not wanting to look at me anymore. Can't say I blame it. I guess I'm pretty messed up. But whose to say I'm not completely sane and the rest of the world is too insane to notice?

Not very likely. But then again, I don't think I'm insane. Not yet. I'm messed up, sure, but not insane. Others may disagree, but they just don't understand my thought process.

Oh well. It doesn't really matter now, does it? Because messed up, insane, or whatever you want to call it, the fact remains that I'm still on the ground bleeding, laughing, sobbing and utterly _broken_.

I've been lying here for all of fifteen seconds. I guess I think to much and too fast. But right now, I'm tired of thinking. I'm perfectly content to just lay here.

Bleeding and broken.

Laughing and sobbing.

And _wait._

**For now, it's just a one-shot, but I may continue depending on reviews.**

**Love it? Hate it? Please tell me!**


	2. Chapter 2

**This is chapter two. I don't like this chapter as much as the first, but I still wanted to continue it. I'll probably make chapter 3 later, although it might be awhile cause of school. Hope you like it!**

I'm sitting on the couch in our living room. Just sitting. Not destroying anything, not breaking any laws, not setting small children on fire or anything else those X-geeks always seem to accuse me of. Geez, I know I cause trouble an all, but seriously I'm not _evil_.

The others understand that. To the X-squad I'm just Avalanche, the guy who seems to enjoy ruining people's lives for a living. But to the others, I'm Lance. The guy who's done whatever he could to just stay alive in this messed up world.

Heh, Pietro would probably laugh at all this. I wouldn't blame him. I am kinda having my own little self-pity party over here.

Where is Pietro anyway? I haven't seen him all day. Which is weird cause on boring days like this, he usually makes it his mission to spice things up. Tries to make us all smile and laugh, and he usually succeeds.

Although now that I think about it, he has been acting kind of weird lately. Just sort of quiet and not all… there. I think it's all just starting to catch up with him. No matter what, Pietro's always been the one to cheer us up, eve if what he really needs is for us to cheer _him_ up.

I could understand if he's a little out of it from time to time. From what I can tell, his mutation effects his thinking a lot. Then there's the whole Magneto thing. I once stayed up all night thinking about it, and I decided that Pietro is the worst off out of all of us. And it's not because his experiences where worse, or because he got hurt more, or anything like that.

It's because his dad's still _there_. I mean, the rest of us got away, where able to move on. Todd got away from his mom, Freddy got away from that freak show, I got away from my foster family and, although it took a bit longer, Tabby got away from her father. But Pietro, he never got away. He was never allowed to move on, to grow up, because his father is always _right there_, looking over his shoulder.

I just got off the phone with the rest of the Brotherhood. None of them have seen him either. They agreed to come over so we can look for him together. I'm probably overreacting. I tend to do that with these guys. I feel responsible for them. I love them. They're my family.

Wow, that was corny. I think I hear Pietro laughing.

But it is true. I think that if I hadn't joined the Brotherhood, I really might have become evil. I think I needed people to take care of and to take of me, no matter how tough I act. I need them, and I like to think they need me too. That's one thing the X-geeks will never understand.

Oh well, the others are here now and we're getting in my jeep to look for him. We're driving down the freeway. I don't even know where to begin looking. With his mutation, he could be in Sweden for all we know!

Todd suggested checking the school to see if he decided to pull any pranks or anything. I guess that makes sense. Maybe he just wanted to blow off some steam.

Wait… Something doesn't feel right. I'm getting this weird feeling in my stomach. Like, anticipation only _bad_. But I could be wrong. It could be nothing. Still... I don't know what it is, but…

I feel the impact before I see it. For a second, I see things the way Pietro must see things all the time. Slow motion.

I watch his body as it is thrown forward on the hood of my jeep. I watch the cracks of the glass seem to grow out of where his head hit it. I watch as the drops of blood trace the shards of glass, staining silver hair and pale skin…. I hear Tabby scream, but it's distant. Like listening from underwater.

Just as suddenly, he's gone. The damage to my car and the three hysterical mutants in the car with me the only proof he was ever there at all.

I slam on the breaks and skid to the side of the road. I sit there, in total shock as the dust clears around us. The others and in full blown panic mode now, and I'm just…silent. I can't help it. I need to think. I need to figure this out. Figure out what to do. And they're. Not. Helping.

"Everyone just SHUT UP!"

There is silence immediately. I'm not sure when my word became law, but it comes in handy every now and then. I rest my head on the steering wheel, just trying to get my breathing under control. Finally, I lift my head and slowly open the door to step onto the street.

"Stay. Here."

All I get is small nods from each of them, but it's enough. I turn and walk down the hill and back to where I think he might have landed. I walk slowly, afraid of what I'm about to see.

I hear him. I can't tell if he's laughing, crying or both, but it's definitely him. I see him lying in a small pool of his own blood.

"Oh Pietro…."

I kneel next to him. For a moment, I don't do anything. I _can't_ do anything. I just watch as he laughs and cries and _bleeds_. Eventually, I can't bear to watch him any longer. I gently move and scoop his frail body into my arms, being as careful not to disturb his fresh wounds as I can when my whole body is trembling.

"Oh Pietro…"

I cradle him to my chest because there's nothing else I can do to ease his pain. Nothing to do but hold him. Hold this broken, shattered soul in my arms and try to make everything better. Not good. Not even ok. Just _better_.

I stand, lifting him with me. I turn to walk back to the car, still shaking. From fear, or shock, or confusion I'm don't know. I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I can't think about it right now. All I think about is the irony that in this darkest hour, I'm walking directly into the sun. The light blinds me, but I don't mind. There's nothing I want to see right now anyway.

I try to walk confidently, even though I'm close to my own mental shut down and holding my broken brother on the side of the freeway. But there's nothing I can do but walk.

Terrified and shaking.

Hoping and Praying.

And _wait._

**I haven't decided yet if I'm going to do the other brotherhood members' point of views or stick with Lance and Pietro or what, but if you got an opinion, TELL ME. PLEEEAAAASSSSSEEEE!!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Ok, sorry this chapter took so long. There was just so much Chemistry, and math analysis and essays OH MY!! Well, here it is. This is from Lance's point of view again because I personally just like writing from his point of view. Hope you enjoy!**

Adrenalin. That is the only, logical, explanation as to how I could possibly be standing at this moment.

But I guess I should explain. I mean, I certainly have a lot of explaining to do to justify why I feel like passing out on my feet and/or curling up into a ball on the floor and just staying there for the next week or so.

It all happened in such a blur, I wasn't even really aware of what I was doing until just now. I carried Pietro back to the car. The already panicking mutants in the back of my jeep then proceeded to panic even more. Tabitha just kept screaming and crying and Todd had to get out of the car to throw up. I felt bad for him. For all the fighting we do, the little guy's never been too good with blood. Especially his friends' blood.

Surprisingly, Freddy was the easiest to calm. I think he was in a sort of shock, but either way he did what I told him to and I gotta thank him for that.

Eventually, we got Todd and Tabby to calm down enough to actually help. Tabby sat in the front with me while Freddy and Todd sat in the back trying to stop the bleeding. Fortunately, or Unfortunately, Pietro fell silent soon after entering the car. Fortunately because the laughing/crying thing was seriously freaking us all out. Unfortunately because he now wasn't responding at all, and that freaked us out just as much. Everything was so confusing, it was all I could do just to drive.

I suppose it was too much to ask for a silent, calm drive. But admittedly, we had to figure out were exactly we were driving _to_. I just could have done with a little less hysteria.

"How did this happen? I don't understand!"

"How hard are you suppose to press to stop the bleeding? I don't wanna hurt him more!

"Pietro? Pietro! Lance, he's still not responding!"

"Oh my God, What do we do? WHAT DO WE DO!?"

"Guys! Calm down! We… We'll take him to a hospital of course."

"We can't do that! They know about us! We'll be lucky if they let us into the parking lot!"

"He opened his eyes! Pietro? Ah, he's out again!"

"Guys, he's bleeding a lot. We need to figure this out fast!"

"What about Xavier's? They've got some freaky lab there, they could help."

"Are you kidding? We'd be walking right into enemy territory!"

"Right now, we don't have enemies! All we've got is our friend who is dying in the back seat of my car! We are going to Xavier's."

With those words, the car fell silent. No one was going to argue with me and I wasn't going to be argued with. I didn't plan on any one dying today.

After breaking at least a dozen laws with my perfectdriving, we saw the X-mansion in the distance. Tabby, having collected herself considerable during the drive, stood up in her seat.

"Don't slow down."

I didn't plan to.

She made a bomb in her hand and as we got closer to the gates of the mansion, she chucked it with all her might. Any other day I would have taken a moment to enjoy the colors of the explosion and the shrapnel flying out from where the fancy iron gate use to stand. But I didn't have time now. I drove through the smoke and skidded to a stop in front of the massive building.

"Everyone stay here while I talk to them."

I knew I wouldn't have to wait long. With all that fancy security those X-geeks were always bragging about, I was sure we had set something off that would send the out.

Sure enough, as I stepped out of the car the whole team came out, ready for battle an all. Man, all these guys talked about was living peacefully with everyone and all that junk yet they always seemed to be the first ones ready to jump into a fight. Hypocrites…

"What do you want Alvers? Come to fight again?" Gee, what a shocker! Summers, always the first to defend coexistence, is also the first to jump to conclusions. Luckily, Summers wasn't the only one there and not everyone's as stupid as him.

"Hey, is that blood?" Nightcrawler was nice enough to point out the red stains on my vest. To be perfectly honest, I hadn't even noticed till he mentioned it. I looked down, looking almost as confused as the rest of the X-squad I'm sure. I guess it never occurred to me that carrying someone who's bleeding could actually get their blood on you. I sure felt smart.

"Alright bub, care to explain?" Well, at least wolverine was feeling semi reasonable. He hadn't even pulled out the claws yet. Gotta hand it to that Anger Management…

"We need help." I said it simply. They looked confused. Whether it was from me asking for help or from me asking _them_ for help I'll never know. Either way, I was actually glad when baldy rolled on out. Guess there's a first time for everything.

"It's ok. They're not here to cause trouble." This statement earned the good professor some skeptical looks, but otherwise they seemed to relax, if only a little.

But I was tired of talking. I didn't know how much time we had and didn't care to find out. "Look, Pietro's hurt and we can't exactly take him to a hospital and I know you've got some crazy medical crap in that mansion so will you help us or not?" I took a deep breath after that and waited to see what would happen. The younger X-men seemed confused and the adults just seemed to be thinking. Finally, after what seemed like forever, The professor took charge again.

"Jean, stay here to help move Pietro downstairs. I want everyone else to go back inside and into their rooms. Do not come out until I tell you, we can't have you in the way. Storm, go set up the equipment in the med lab and we'll meet you there. Hank, you just let us know what you need. I'll make sure he stays unconscious during treatment." After a moments hesitation, everyone did as they were told.

Now it was Hank's turn to take control. "Jean, I want you to very carefully lift Pietro out of the car. Try to move him as little as possible. My word, he's worse than I was expecting… Alright, now let's get him to the med lab." Hank followed jean as she moved telekinetically lifted Pietro into the mansion while the Professor wheeled next to them, keeping him asleep until he could be given a proper sedative. For a few seconds the four of us just stood there.

"…Guys... I think I'm dreaming…" That was all I could say. And I was seriously considering it. That this was all some crazy messed up nightmare and that any moment I would wake up in our rundown house with no food and no heat and holes in the wall from Tabby's bombs and Pietro would be standing over me with an empty bucket of ice water and I would kill him, but in a loving, brotherly way.

Todd pinched me.

"Ow!"

"Guess you're not."

...

Well #&()+.

**Well, that's it for chapter 3. I'm not sure how long this is gonna be, but I'm definitely writing chapter 4. Whether or not it continues after that depends. **

**Oh, and in case you were wondering about the censoring on that last line... that was for a couple reasons:**

**1) I was raised not to cuss. Plain and simple. For all you know, that censored word was "Fudge" (Although I admit, that's not what I imagine there)**

**2) I just feel it has a whole different feel being censored than if it was written out. Seriously, to me it's different.**

**Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Ok, sorry this took so much longer than expected. This chapter was harder than I thought it'd be. Any who, Lance is getting some therapy in this chapter. XD Hope you enjoy it!**

Now I'm back in the present, though I don't really want to be. Me and the others are waiting outside the X-men's med lab. Todd and Freddy are sitting down, mumbling to each other and Tabby is leaning against the wall, her lip bleeding a bit from where she's bitten it to hard. I tried to sit earlier, but I can't stop pacing. Contrasting images of Pietro keep flashing through my head. One is from when I first met him, that cocky, egotistical speed demon who always made me laugh, even if it wasn't always intentional. The other is of his pale face against my windshield, cracked glass filled with blood like a halo around his head.

"Sit down, Rocky. You're making me dizzy."

Oh, did I forget to mention that Wolverine was in the room as well? My bad…

I glare at him and pace more, now chewing my nails as well. I know I should be nicer for all they're doing for Pietro, but I can't help it. I'm more than a bit stressed right now. This whole time I've been thinking about how Pietro was hurt, but the more I think about it, the more I realize, I was the one who hit him. It hadn't occurred to me earlier, but I was driving. It was my car that hit him.

Sure, what happened was most likely Pietro's own doing (another stressful thought) but I couldn't shake the nagging guilt. _I hit him_.

I practically jump out of my skin when I feel the hand on my should. I whip my head around to face Wolverine.

"Wearing the floor down while you chew your fingers off isn't going to help anyone."

His voice is surprisingly soft. I'm not sure if it is the shock of that or I am just too weak from the events of the day but either way I don't fight him as he guides me to a chair on the other side of the room, a little away from the others. They don't notice anyway.

"You know, you never actually told us what happened."

"Would you believe me if I said I didn't know?"

"…I think in this situation, I would."

His answer surprises me. I have only ever know the gruff, battle side of Wolverine. But here he is now, being nice and in some inexplicable way, comforting. I start to ramble before I can even think to stop myself.

"We were looking for him. He hadn't been home all day and I was worried. Didn't really have a reason to be. At least, at the time I didn't think I did. But I was So I called the others and we went to look for him. Guess we found him…"

I laugh, slightly hysterical, and it scares me how much it sounds like Pietro did on the side of the road. So I ramble more.

"It happened too fast. _He_ was too fast. I didn't see him. I don't think I was suppose to... But I should have known something was wrong. He's been off lately. Just off. I can't explain it. But Pietro's Never off! He's always, fine! At least, he always told us he was fine.. Oh God, I should have known! I should have seen something, anything! I just, he just…"

I'm shaking now. When did that start? For the second time in the last five minutes, I jump out of my skin at Wolverine's touch.

"Kid, you can't blame yourself. For any of this. Whatever happened, there was nothing you could do."

I take a few deep breaths and hang my head down low.

"How do you know?"

"Because, I've seen you. All of you. You can be annoying as Hell sometimes, but anyone can see you guys care about each other. If there had been an opportunity for you to do something, you would have done it. Which means there must not have been an opportunity."

"But… I can't bring myself to blame him for any of this either…"

"I didn't say you had to. Look, don't take this the wrong way, but as far as I can tell, you kids are all pretty screwed up to some degree. And that's not any of your faults either. It just means it's harder to ask for help. That's one of the reasons I was surprised when you asked us for help today. But the fact is, what happened happened, nothing's gonna change that. I can think of a few people who could be to blame, but none of them are in here."

It takes me a minute to digest his words. Surprisingly, I'm not offended at all at him calling us screwed up because, really, we are. I think over his words and no matter how I look at it, I can't disagree with him. I turn and smile.

"Thanks."

He nods and smiles back. "No problem."

We sit in silence for an indefinite amount of time. Finally, Hank walks out. He's wearing scrubs with blood on them, making him look a bit like a murderer, but I choose to ignore that. He look tired and for the first time I look at the clock and realize it's been almost four hours since we got here.

"Well, he had some internal bleeding, three broken ribs, a concussion, and a dislocated shoulder. I performed surgery to stop the bleeding and a few tests for the head wound, but I believe he'll be alright."

There is a collective sigh of relief between all in the room. I walk over to the other brotherhood members and we have a sort of half group hug. Tabby is crying a bit, but other than that we are silent.

"If you want, one of you can sit with him. He should wake up in a little bit."

We look at each other. Scratch that. I look at them and they look at me. Their eyes tell me everything, but just to be safe, Freddy gives an encouraging nod. I guess that decisions been made.

I nod back and walk back to the door leading to Pietro's room.

"Call if you need anything."

Hank gives me a pat on the shoulder and for once I manage to not jump out of my skin. I nod again and take a deep breath before walking into the room. I see him and my heart almost stops beating.

Pietro's always been pale, but right now, he looks about as white as the sheets he's laying on. I walk over slowly, like I might break him if my footsteps are too loud. I sit on the chair next to his bed. I don't really know what I'm suppose to be doing, so I just sit and watch him. He's attached to a bunch of machines that monitor his heart and breathing and some other things that show he's alive.

He looks so peaceful. Fragile, sure, but peaceful none the less. I almost wish he could look like that when he's awake. Peaceful, I mean. Normally, he's so guarded and had this subtle look like he's carrying the world on his shoulders. Always in a hurry, always somewhere to be, something to do, never a moment to stop and just _be_.

Then again, I guess I'm being a bit of a hypocrite. I mean, I do the same thing. It's like Newton's law. Once you get going, you just can't stop. Until something forces you to stop. Something like this. But just the same, once you stop, you wont start again unless something gives you a push. I guess that's what I'm suppose to be doing. Pietro needed to stop, now it's my job to get him back going again. Until he needs to stop again. Then I'll be there to slow him down gently.

"Lance?"

The voice is soft. Not as weak as I would have expected, just soft. Like he didn't was to disturb me. How thoughtful. Oh well, it's now or never. Time to get him going again. Time to get us all going again.

"Hey."

Push.

**Like it? Yes? No? Please tell!**


	5. Chapter 5

Hey! Ok, so this chapter's a little (or a lot) different from the others. Why? Because 1.) I wanted to experiment with this style and 2.) It seemed to fit with the chapter. So Pretty much what you need to know is:

**This** Lance, and **_This_** Pietro

You should be able to figure out the spoken words through context. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

* * *

"Hey."

**_Is for horses._**

"Hey."

**_Uncomfortable silence._**

**Uncomfortable silence.**

"How are you?"

**_Do you really want to know?_**

**I really want to know.**

"I'm fine."

**_I'm such a liar._**

**He's such a liar.**

"Pietro."

**Tell me the truth.**

**_Alright, I get it._**

"…I'm not sure."

**_I was hoping you would tell me._**

"Oh."

**_Uncomfortable silence._**

**Uncomfortable silence.**

"What happened?"

**_We might be here a while._**

**Don't you dare lie to me.**

"I guess… It was just to much."

**_My lungs hurt from holding in screams._**

**Stop whispering.**

"Why didn't you come to me?"

**I could have helped.**

**_I'm beyond help._**

"Didn't know what to say."

**You didn't have to say anything.**

**_It hurt too much._**

"You scared me."

**_I didn't mean to._**

**It wasn't your fault.**

"Sorry."

**_For everything._**

**Don't be.**

"It's ok."

**_No it's not._**

**It will be, someday.**

"Are you mad at me?"

**_I don't think I could handle it._**

**I don't think I could be if I tried.**

"Of course not."

**_Thank you._**

**You're welcome.**

"You got the X-men to help?"

**Way to change the subject.**

**_I'm honestly surprised._**

"Yeah. They were actually pretty cool about it."

**_Shocker._**

**I know.**

"Even Wolverine?"

_**He hates me doesn't he?**_

"Even Wolverine."

_**Guess not.**_

"What happens now?"

**I protect you, if you let me.**

"I don't know."

**_I need you to know._**

**I'm sorry.**

"Oh."

**_Uncomfortable silence._**

**Uncomfortable silence.**

"Talk to me."

**I'm not letting you go that easily.**

_**Can we change the subject again?**_

"Pietro."

**Please.**

**_I can't._**

**Speak up!**

**_I can't!_**

**Try.**

**_...For you…_**

"It hurts."

**Thank you.**

"Let me help you."

**Please.**

**_I don't know…_**

"I don't think you can."

**Don't underestimate me.**

**_Wouldn't dream of it._**

"You have to let me."

**_Maybe I am wrong._**

**_After all...  
_**

**_If any one can help…_**

"Ok."

**_It's my brother.

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_**

**_

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_**ok, so I know this was different, but I hope you still liked it! If you didn't though, please tell me! Also, I'm gonna be honest with you, the next chapter (if there is one) is probably gonna be a while. Mostly because I don't know where to go with this now. If you have suggestions, let me know! PLEASE!!**  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey all! I have rewritten chapters 6 and 7. I re-read them and decided... they sucked. So! Here's the revisions. Hope you all enjoy! **

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_Professor Charles Xavier_

I hesitate. I can't help but feel a little guilty for it, either. This shouldn't be a matter that calls for hesitating. I look into the med-bay where the five children that have been forced to call us enemies are chatting, looking for all they're worth like this is nothing special. Like they're just visiting a normal, hurt friend in a normal hospital for normal reasons. And I wish more than anything that that was the case. But it's not.

The fact is, they are mutants. And they are visiting a teammate in the hospital bay below a boarding school for another group of mutants that are fighting on the opposite side of a war they shouldn't be a part of, because their friend, brother, tried to kill himself.

And I should not be hesitating. I should have no problem going into that room and offering my assistance, shelter, whatever they need so that they, all of them, can get better. But the fact is, none of this is as simple as it should be. They have been taught to see us as their foes, to not accept help from anyone, to not show weakness.

But I realize with a sigh, that I have to try. I have to help these kids because the reality is they need it, and no one else will offer it. So, with Hank, Logan, and Ororo behind me, I enter the room.

Immediately, their heads all snap to look at us, distrust and suspicion heavy in their eyes. Lance is trying his best to act the part of 'cool, calm, and collected leader' and doing a surprisingly good job of it. It is only his thoughts that give away his inner concerns. Still, it is him that speaks first.

"Is something wrong?" Always worried about his friends. They really are a family. I shake my head.

"No, nothing's wrong." Tabitha, my prodigal student who I had always hoped would one day return, just under different circumstances, cocks her head to the side and narrows her eyes warily.

"Then how come all of you are here?" Her statement makes me doubt my decision to have this discussion together, with everyone, but I press on.

"We would like to offer you all a place to stay. Here, at the institute." Todd stiffens in his seat. His mind is a jumble of confusion and a simple desire for things to go back to how they were before. For everything to be ok.

"But, you said Pietro was gonna be ok. Why does he need to stay if nothings wrong, yo?" I am quick to reassure him.

"Pietro will be fine. He is healing marvelously and should be in full health by the end of the week." Lance speaks again.

"Then why do you want us to stay?"

"Because, I am concerned about how you were living before. I would also like to take precautions to prevent something like this from happening again." The five share a glance, all suddenly just a tad suspicious of each other, whether anyone else would try something. I continue during their silence. "Here, I could keep an eye on you. Also, you would no longer have to concern yourselves with troubles such as food, bills, or other such matters."

Even without my abilities, I can see the wheels turning in their heads. To stay here means to, at least to an extent, trust us. Housing with this enemy. But it is obvious to everyone that the pros outweigh the cons. I am aware that they had been having money problems, and this way they could focus more on their friend's health instead of how to survive another week.

However, I still see them all instinctively look to Lance. He looks tired and worn, but he still manages to look at me with a strength and resolve in his eyes.

"If we say yes, is it permanent?"

"Of course not. You are always free to leave when you wish. No one will force you to stay. Just ask Tabitha." He nods in contemplation. "Although," I add, "You will be expected to adhere to school rules and such." He nods again, glances at his friends, takes a breath, and turns back to me.

"Alright. We'll stay." I smile as I hear Logan mentally groan. However, I can't help but wince when he thinks of all the havoc the five are likely to cause.

Perhaps it was a matter worth hesitating on…

…But I still don't regret it.

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**Well, hope you enjoyed! Please review and I'll _try_ to be more consistent with updates!**


	7. Chapter 7

_Scott_

I watch them as they move the few boxes of belongings they have into their new bedroom. I'm not watching because I'm curious or anything. I'm watching because, to put it frankly, I don't trust them. The five of them showed up randomly with a bloody teammate, and suddenly they're moving in. Tabby moved into her old room, while the other four chose to share a room next to hers.

They seem… normal, I guess? I don't know. When they're alone and think no ones looking, they seem sort of tense, uncomfortable. But as soon as they see one of us, they immediately go into 'annoying Brotherhood' mode. Heck, even Quicksilver managed his usual cocky smirk and insult war with Evan, and he's suppose to be injured!

I don't really know what to make of it all, especially since we still haven't gotten the full story. All the professor told us was that there was an accident, Pietro had been hurt, and they had chosen to stay at the mansion for a bit.

Now there are many segments of this that make no sense to me. First off, Pietro, _Quicksilver, _was the one who got hurt. How is it that the fastest member of their team is the one that got hurt, and pretty badly at that? It just doesn't make sense. Secondly, they _chose _to stay here? Since when has the Brotherhood ever willingly involved themselves with us? None of it adds up.

Either way, we now have five new (well, four new, one returning technically) housemates. And as much as I'd love to be all 'role model' for the younger students and welcome them with open arms and all that crap, I'm not sure I'm capable of pretending I want them here.

Lance caught me watching them. He immediately sends his usual glare my way.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer." I glare back, but stay silent. Even if I don't trust them, obviously the professor doesn't think they're a threat, so I have to at least trust him. I jump a little as Jean puts her hand on my shoulder. But I still smile. Jean always makes me smile.

"Dinner's almost ready." Before I can reply, the Blob and Toad rush past.

"Alright, yo! Chow time!"

"Yeah, I'm starving!" The others soon follow as well, grinning at their friends' antics.

"When aren't you hungry, Fred?"

"What? It's my mutation!" They laughed a bit before disappearing behind the corner.

Yup. I definitely don't trust them.

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**Ok, so this was sort of a 'filler chapter'. It's just a look into the minds of one of the X-men to see what he thinks of all this. Next chapter will have more actually story. I don't know how long I'll keep up all the points of view/ first person narrative. It's kinda difficult, so I might just go into third person and occasionally have a first person chapter. But let me know what you think! Thanks!**


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